Where are Georgia Tech's departing transfers playing next season?

Georgia Tech has seen its fair shar of transfers depart this offseason

Jackson Caudell | Jun 30, 2023

Where are Georgia Tech's departing transfers playing next season? /

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Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets

Georgia Tech has made some nice additions through the transfer portal this offseason, but like other teams around the country, they lost some contributors from their program.

Where did these players land this offseason?

QB Jeff Sims- Nebraska

Georgia Tech quarterback Jeff Sims — Jeff Sims transferred from Georgia Tech to Nebraska this offseason / Brett Davis-USA TODAY Sports

Sims came to Georgia Tech as a four-star recruit in the 2020 class and he was formerly committed to Florida State and it was a big recruiting win for former head coach Geoff Collins at the time. Sims started as a true freshman and actually won his first start against the Seminoles. He showed flashes of being a high-level player, but inconsistent play and injuries hampered Sims during his time in Atlanta.

Sims was the starting quarterback coming into this season, but was injured late in the victory against Duke and then re-injured early in the loss to Virginia. That would be the last time that Sims took a snap for the Yellow Jackets.

He made the decision to transfer to Nebraska and play for Matt Rhule, who is entering his first season as the Cornhusker's head coach. The other quarterback in the competition at Nebraska, Casey Thompson, transferred to FAU after the spring, which would seem to indicate that Sims will be the starting quarterback.

During three seasons as the Yellow Jackets quarterback, Sims threw for 4,464 yards, 30 touchdowns, and 23 interceptions. He had a career 57.5% completion percentage. Sims also had 1,166 yards rushing and 11 touchdowns in his career with the Yellow Jackets.

LB Demetrius Knight- Charlotte

Knight had been a part of the Georgia Tech program since 2019 and had been a part of the linebacker rotation. He made plays in his freshmen season in 2019, including a strip sack that gave Georgia Tech a touchdown in their upset win over Miami.

For his career with Georgia Tech, Knight finishes with 51 tackles, two pass deflections, one sack, and two forced fumbles.

Knight committed to Charlotte in December.

WR Ryan King- East Carolina

🏴‍☠️#Committed pic.twitter.com/jFxl1EYPF4
— Ryan King (@ryanking_rk) January 8, 2023

King is going to be playing for Mike Houston and the East Carolina Pirates in the future. King was a talented player that just could not find a role for himself while in Atlanta and finished his career with only five catches for 45 yards, zero touchdowns, and averaging nine yards per catch.

RB Dylan McDuffie- Kansas

BREAKING: KU has flipped RB Dylan McDuffie who will bring immediate help to the group. The staff was looking for a RB and found a player they are familiar with.

More on the breaking news. #kufball

LINK: https://t.co/OqICReqzlU pic.twitter.com/TfQMpnbW7W
— JayhawkSlant (@JayhawkSlant) January 21, 2023

After initially committing to Charlotte, McDuffie flipped to the Jayhawks today and will finish out his college career playing for Lance Leipold.

McDuffie transferred to Tech from Buffalo and he was hopeful to be the leader in the Georgia Tech backfield and had rushed for 1,000 yards during his last season at Buffalo.

After beginning the year as the starting running back, McDuffie quickly saw his carries go down, and towards the end of the year, the Yellow Jackets were only using Hassan Hall, Dontae Smith, and freshman Jamie Felix in the backfield.

For the season, McDuffie had 22 carries for 45 yards and one touchdown. His last carry came in Georgia Tech's upset win over Pitt in Brent Key's debut as the interim head coach.

QB Taisun Phommachanh- UMass

Walking by FAITH not by sight ❤️‍🔥 pic.twitter.com/qddo5Jb2qP
— Taisun Phommachanh⚡️ (@TPhommachanh_7) January 17, 2023

Phommachanh spent much of his only season on The Flats as the fourth-string quarterback, but when Jeff Sims and Zach Pyron suffered injuries, Phommachanh was forced into backup quarterback duty. He played a key role in the upset against North Carolina and had a rushing touchdown the next game against No.1 Georgia.

He came to Atlanta after spending the first part of his career at Clemson, where he also could not get on the field and play a large role. He had a hard time seeing the field and was unlikely to be a significant part of new head coach Brent Key's plans moving forward.

DB Derrik Allen- North Carolina

Extremely blessed for this opportunity to continue my athletic and academic pursuits as a grad transfer. I’m excited to be a Tar Heel! @UNCFootball #Committed #FamilyAffair pic.twitter.com/DbWS0lhHWW
— Derrik Allen (@DsmoothAllen) December 19, 2022

Last season, Allen played a backup role behind LaMiles Brooks and true freshman Clayton Powell-Lee. Those two became one of the best safety duos in the ACC and it was hard for Allen to see the field consistently.

This season, Allen had 29 tackles and one interception. For his career, Allen finished with 46 tackles, one pass deflection, and one interception.

Allen's brother plays at UNC as well.

OL Paula Vaipulu- North Texas

Vaipulu was a part-time starter for Georgia Tech and started four games this season and five games last year.

WR Nate McCollum- North Carolina

Nate McCollum was the leading receiver for Georgia Tech during the 2022 season and was one of the bright spots of an offense that struggled all season. He decided to enter the transfer portal shortly after the season and today, McCollum announced where he is going to be transferring to for the 2023 season.

McCollum is staying in the ACC and going to Chapel Hill to play for North Carolina. North Carolina is going to be returning one of the best quarterbacks in the country for the 2023 season in Drake Maye and they were needing some replacements for guys they lost after the season. Georgia Tech does host North Carolina at Bobby Dodd Stadium next season.

McCollum caught 60 passes for 655 yards this past season and had three touchdowns. McCollum had twice as many receptions as the next closest receiver, which was actually running back Hassan Hall with 28.

For his career, McCollum finished with 75 catches for 778 yards and four touchdowns. He took a big step forward as the top target in the Yellow Jackets' offense and should be an impact player for the Tar Heels next season, who are replacing their own leading receiver from 2022 (Josh Downs).

WR Kalani Norris- MTSU

Norris had flashed at times during the 2021 season his ability to be a downfield threat. He finished with eight catches for 134 yards and averaged over 16 yards per reception. Norris only had two catches this season for 47 yards, including a 30-yard reception against UCF.

CB Zamari Walton- Ole Miss

Georgia Tech's Zamari Walton and Makius Scott — Zamari Walton transferred to Ole Miss this offseason / Brett Davis-USA TODAY Sports

Walton was arguably the top cornerback on Georgia Tech last season and finished with 36 tackles, six pass deflections, and an interception. According to PFF (Pro Football Focus), Walton was the third-highest-graded player on the Yellow Jackets' defense and finished with a 75.5 grade, with a 72.6 grade in coverage.

DB Jalen Huff- FAU

Huff, a member of the Yellow Jackets 2020 recruiting class and former three-star defensive back according to 247Sports, tweeted on April 13th that he will be entering the transfer portal with three years of eligibility.

Huff accounted for seven tackles and one forced fumble during his three seasons in Atlanta.

DE Grey Carroll- Liberty

DT KJ Miles- Temple

Miles was not able to crack the rotation last season and did not record any statistics. The duo of Daquan Douse and Makius Scott emerged for Georgia Tech last season and other guys like Zeek Biggers, Jason Moore, and Clemson transfer Etinosa Reuben are going to be right behind those other two.

DT Akelo Stone- Ole Miss

Stone was one of the captains of the spring game for the Yellow Jackets and after the game, was awarded the Rock Perdoni outstanding defensive lineman award. Stone was expected to be a big part of the defensive line rotation this season and the defensive tackle depth has taken a hit during this transfer portal window cycle.

Stone joined Walton as the GT transfers to go play at Ole Miss this offseason. Georgia Tech travels to Oxford on September 16th.

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